A Candidate By Any Other Name

November 29, 2007 | Shakespeare’s Juliet contemplated the significance of a name centuries ago when she tried to convince her lover Romeo that being from a rival family didn’t matter. As 2008 approaches, more than a few Americans who share a name with one of the presidential candidates feel as Juliet did—that there’s not much in a name—and have sweetened the campaign coffers of their namesake’s rivals. For these individuals, the amusement of riding around with their name “for president” on a bumper sticker isn’t enough to win them over.

Take Robert E. Huckabee, III of Wrightsville Beach, N.C. With Mike Huckabee running for the Republican nomination, this election might be the only chance that a Huckabee will ever occupy 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. But instead of writing the former Arkansas governor a check, this gaming company executive bet $2,000 on Democrat Bill Richardson.

There’s no more loyalty among Richardsons, however. Amy Richardson, an attorney in Washington, D.C., donated $950 to Barack Obama‘s campaign because she agrees with the positions he has expressed during debates, she said. While watching the Democratic candidates spar, she realized she didn’t agree with the New Mexico governor’s views, ensuring she won’t be supporting his candidacy.

“My dad’s name is Bill Richardson, and I still didn’t give him money,” she added. Like the other donors interviewed for this story, Amy Richardson is not closely related to any presidential candidate. Some donors surmised there might have been some familial connection generations ago.

Wayne Clinton, a county supervisor in Story County, Iowa, has shared a surname with a president before, but instead of resuming the streak and backing Hillary Clinton, he contributed $400 to Obama. As a resident of the first state to caucus in 2008, Wayne Clinton said that while he voted for Bill, a shared last name isn’t enough to put him in Hillary’s camp.

“This [election], I looked at the field, at the many outstanding candidates, and I made my choice.” Clinton said. “I will not contribute to anyone else. I only support one candidate for president.”

For Donald Edwards in Frankfort, Ill., the one candidate he supports is not John Edwards—at least not yet—but another Democrat, Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd, who also happens to be a family friend. The credit union executive donated $250 in June to Dodd but said recently that he’s been tempted to contribute to Edwards as well, because of their shared name. Some of Donald Edwards’s family members have already given to the former North Carolina senator for that reason, he said.

A shared ideology trumps sharing a name in the calculations of several ’08 donors. Gregory Edwards, a Florida financial advisor who gave $2,300 to Rudy Giuliani, said he’s a staunch Republican who wouldn’t support a Democrat no matter what the candidate’s name was.

Washington consultant Mary McCain had a similar reason for not supporting candidate John McCain. She gave $1,000 to Hillary Clinton and $300 to Barack Obama but overlooked McCain because she is a far-left Democrat.

Daniel Clinton, a consultant from Brookline, Mass., didn’t feel any guilt when he donated $150 to Mitt Romney, the former governor of his state. Clinton agrees with Romney’s “ethics, style and everything he stands for,” he said.

“Hillary’s not even a real Clinton,” he explained, because her husband, who was born William Jefferson Blythe III, took his stepfather’s name in high school. Therefore, in Daniel Clinton’s view, Hillary Clinton isn’t any “real Clinton at all.”

While these namesake donors have picked their horses, some of them said they might go with the family name should their first-choice candidate drop out of the race.

New Orleans attorney Dow Edwards gave $2,300 to Barack Obama but could see himself switching to John Edwards if Obama were no longer an option. Similarly, Catherine Dodd, a student in San Francisco, said she would be supporting Chris Dodd if Hillary Clinton weren’t in the race. “But Hillary is the best candidate for the job. She’s the most qualified, most experienced and smartest,” said Dodd, who donated $535 to the former first lady’s campaign.

In Albuquerque, Cynthia Edwards donated $250 to Richardson, like a lot of New Mexicans. Though she has thought about giving money to John Edwards, as long as her state’s governor is in the race, she is going to stay loyal to him, she said. Edwards the office administrator found another way to support Edwards the presidential hopeful.

“I have a daughter who lives in Washington, D.C., who loves politics,” she said. “For her birthday a couple years ago, we got her an Edwards ’08 T-shirt.”

Mitt Romney is one candidate who has been able to tap into his large family for donations. A cousin, Mike Romney, said it was cool to address his $2,300 check to someone with the same last name; however, that wasn’t why he made the contribution. “But it didn’t hurt,” he said.

“I have to admit, it would be pretty fun” to share a last name with a president, said the marketing associate from Higley, Ariz. “I don’t think it will get me any free (White House) tours, because the Romney clan is quite large, but it would be a great conversation piece.”

All White House tours are free of charge, though, no matter what your name is.

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